That would actually be a heck of a diet plan if you think about it. Being able to live for a while on your fat stores without eating. Provided that you don't get hungry & repack the calories back in, your body eating itself should shed the pounds/inches fairly quickly. An ultra low calorie diet does that but you're very hungry for a while & not getting needed nutrients/minerals. An interesting thought anyway.

This is news? I figured they were always working on stuff like that. Some of the research into basically freezing critically injured people is really interesting. Keep them alive until you can get to a high-end hospital.

NotARocketScientist:If they can come up with something that triggers using fat cells instead of eating (and hunger), they'll have a product that will sell well enough to pay the national debt.

The working without sleep one is scary though, as it is likely to burn people out. How long till corporate masters require it's use by employees?

From my understanding it's easy enough to dose someone with a chemical that makes a person feel rested, however I don't believe there is any real way to actually make someone rested. As corporations have a vested interest in their employees not going completely insane from lack of sleep (if for no other reason then to avoid paying workman's comp), I doubt it'll ever come into widespread use on that side of things.

I'm sure it'll be useful enough to keep soldiers awake in emergency situations, but it'll be a long time before we can actually replicate all the effects of sleep in pill form, if ever.

I don't think this warrants a 'scary' tag. This research is a long way off. Even with the success of the exo-skeleton, there is still no efficient way to power it at the moment.

The food idea is interesting, but I think not particularly practical. I always took very little food, even on multiple day patrols, because you can easily live off of 1 MRE a day. The real killer is water, even with saline solutions we consumed very large quantities of it, and there is no way to make it lighter. Don't see how you can get around that.

Reducing ammo weight would be awesome too, we always carried way more than the textbook load out, alternative propellants could be a great way to reduce this, but I doubt they will be cost-effective enough.

They shall be my finest warriors, these men who give of themselves to me. Like clay I shall mould them, and in the furnace of war forge them. They will be of iron will and steely muscle. In great armour shall I clad them and with the mightiest guns will they be armed. They will be untouched by plague or disease, no sickness will blight them. They will have tactics, strategies and machines so that no foe can best them in battle. They are my bulwark against the Terror. They are the Defenders of Humanity. They are my Space Marines and they shall know no fear.

GAT_00:This is news? I figured they were always working on stuff like that. Some of the research into basically freezing critically injured people is really interesting. Keep them alive until you can get to a high-end hospital.

I'm just thinking of the possibilities that limb regrowth could give to the world. Also, what better way to manipulate someone into joining the Army than telling them they could be like Captain America/Iron Man? I'd even be tempted myself.

I was under the impression that protein was the way to build muscle mass.

Anyway, looking at this from the guise of someone trying to lose weight (vs a soldier going without rations).

They can still have a caloric intake (IE, they don't have to go down to 0 calorie intake). From that premise, would it be possible to take in enough protein and lift enough weights to counter the loss of muscle from having large daily net loss of calories.

IE, say someone that normally eats 2000 calories per day (but really should be eating 1500 calories per day) cut their intake to 500 calories per day.

That would result in a net loss of 1000 calories per day. Can they subsist on the 500 calories that they intake (with their stored body fat making up the other 1000 calories of their daily requirement).

They shall be my finest warriors, these men who give of themselves to me. Like clay I shall mould them, and in the furnace of war forge them. They will be of iron will and steely muscle. In great armour shall I clad them and with the mightiest guns will they be armed. They will be untouched by plague or disease, no sickness will blight them. They will have tactics, strategies and machines so that no foe can best them in battle. They are my bulwark against the Terror. They are the Defenders of Humanity. They are my Space Marines and they shall know no fear.

"It is hoped to replace the amphetamine-based drugs that have previously been used to keep servicemen alert during operations. They had been found to affect decision making and had been blamed for errors in judgement that had led to many so-called incidents of friendly fire."

ParagonComplex:I'm just thinking of the possibilities that limb regrowth could give to the world. Also, what better way to manipulate someone into joining the Army than telling them they could be like Captain America/Iron Man? I'd even be tempted myself.

I'm holding out for giant robots.

/I mean, being a super soldier is nice and all, but it aint the same as squishing enemies under your feet.